There are currently available a variety of temporary enclosures owned and installed by contractors for providing temporary electrical service for building construction. Two of the more common enclosures are shown in FIGS. 1a and 1b. In the enclosure shown in FIG. 1a, an electric meter 10 is located below a circuit breaker-power receptacle compartment 17. A utility supply cable 11 is connected to the electric meter 10 and to a utility enclosure (not shown for simplicity), while the contractor's load cables 12 exit the enclosure from the circuit breaker-power receptacle compartment and extend such as to individual housing units in a housing development under construction. The enclosure is mounted to a temporary support post 13 which is typically comprised of wood or may be in the form of a pipe. In the enclosure shown in FIG. 1b, a utility supply cable is run from an existing power source and is connected to an electric meter 14 which is located above a circuit breaker-power receptacle compartment 18. A cable 15 connects the enclosure shown in FIG. 1b to underground cables (not shown). This enclosure is also mounted to a temporary support post 16. The contractor's load cables (not shown in the figure for simplicity) are run out of a lower portion of the enclosure and are available for the contractor to connect power tools.
The connection of the temporary power center to the electric utility enclosure is via cables protected by flexible waterproof conduit. The contractor's plug-in type take-off cable attachments include 90.degree. connectors with 600 V insulated 3/c cable. This temporary electric power installation thus incorporates two separate remote enclosures, i.e., the meter connection enclosure and utility enclosure, connected by cables. This arrangement requires separate mounting arrangements for the two enclosures and presents a potential hazard in the exposed cables connecting these enclosures. In addition, the temporary mounting arrangement of the meter connection enclosure and associated exposed cables is aesthetically undesirable.
The present invention addresses the aforementioned limitations of the prior art by providing a temporary power center for an underground residential system including an electric meter and circuit breaker-power receptacle combination disposed in a side-by-side manner in a housing which is adapted for secure attachment to an electric utility enclosure.